What Doctors Don't Tell You
The findings are based on a review of 37 studies that looked at the impact of calcium consumption on bone strength in children and adolescents. Of those studies, 27 found no link between dairy or dietary calcium intake and measures of bone health. Of the rest of the reports, nine found calcium’s effects on bone health to be minimal.
The researchers concluded there was little convincing evidence to support the current recommendations that eating more dairy provides bone benefits in children and adolescents (Pediatrics, 2005; 115: 736-43).
HOURS OF SLEEP
You’ve got to get it right
Getting the right amount of sleep will do more than help you wake up refreshed.
People who usually sleep six hours or less every night are at an increased risk for impaired glucose tolerance and type 2 (non-insulin-dependent) diabetes in comparison to those who get seven or eight hours a night. However, the risk also increases for those who sleep for nine or more hours per night.
This is from a study of nearly 1500 adults in the Sleep Heart Health Study (Arch Intern Med, 2005; 165: 863-7).
FUNDUSCOPY’S FUNCTION
There isn’t one, say the Dutch
Routine funduscopy may add no value to the management of patients with hypertension, says a new Dutch study.
Funduscopy is the examination of the fundus (retina) of the eye through the pupil using a hand-held instrument. It is still recommended as part of the routine examination of patients with high blood pressure, but its purpose has been questioned in recent years.
In this review of 111 studies looking into the possible relationships between hypertensive retinopathy and blood pressure, the team concluded that evidence to support carrying out funduscopy in hypertensive patients is lacking (BMJ, 2005; 331: 73-6).
Tom Ferguson MD
Daniel Redwood DC
